miles gear bivies and uber bivy, thoughts?

Jason,

I can't believe that nobody answered you. They can't all be in the field all the time :)

Anything I can help you with?

Thanks,
Dave

I have the smaller version of the miles gear Bivy. Not the uber, but the smaller one than that. I have a couple of friends who have the uber version, and they love it. As for me, I've been very pleased with its performance to cost ratio. It was the lightest bivy that I could find that had a built in screen and pole (and wasn't custom or $$$$$). I have been rough on it, and it's held up pretty well with one exception. I was trying to get the pole in to the sleeve in a rush, and I tore the bottom of the sleeve. Totally not the fault of the construction quality, I was being very very rough. It was very easy to fix with Tyvek tape, and I'm all set again with no issues. I feel like these are reasonably priced, and well-built. I would recommend them without reservation.

At one time, Miles would offer to rent one out so that perspective customers could give them a try before they buy. I'm not sure if they still offer the service, but it wouldn't hurt to reach out if you're the kind of person that likes to touch and feel before you drop the cash.

For reference, I have also owned a Gore-Tex outdoor research Bivy, a MSR e-Bivy, and currently have a SOL emergency Bivy and a Integral Designs overbag/Bivy. I only say that so that you know that it's not like the miles Bivy is the only one that I've used. Feel free to respond if you have any questions or you can personal message me. Good luck with your search.

I am pretty close to pulling the trigger on the Uber bivy. To me it fits into a similar category as the Nemo Gogo bivy/tent. It provides the room to maneuver that most bivys do not provide. The breathability is the other big factor. For bivys that need to provide full protection from the elements it seems hard to beat the Uber or Pico Bivy feature set

Dave, I know they are out there too. :) I know most of the information you've provided elsewhere, I'm just looking for experience in the field from users. Thanks for the offer!

Steve, thanks for the feedback. That is really helpful. How does the fabric compare to Gor-Tex with regard to durability and breathability?

Randy, the Uber is the bivy I'd get if I go with a bivy. I just have to decide if its something I need or want. Thanks for your thoughts.

Jason – Short answer is more breathable, less durable. A couple of asterisks next to that answer, though….

I used the gore bivy in winter conditions. It seemed to retain a ton of moisture. I'm sure that someone with a better knowledge of fabric science could talk about why, I just found that winter + goretex + bivy = moisture. I wouldn't have felt comfortable being in the gore bivy for more than a couple of nights in the winter as my bag would end up pretty damp and compressed.

I have not had any condensation issues on the Miles bivy, but I have only used it in 3-season conditions. It seems to breathe really, really well. I'd put it on a breathability level of my eVent bag (possibly better, but again I've never used it in the winter and I have used the eVent one.) My friends have used their Uber bivys in the winter, but then in a lean-to in the ADKs. So they were more using it as a bag cover than a true bivy. No condensation complaints from them, though. As for the durability, the tyvek is less durable than the gore was but that's not to say that the tyvek is weak. Miles strongly suggested using a ground sheet to protect the bivy, and that's probably good advice. With that said though, I never have used a ground sheet and I do not have any holes or tears (other that the pole sleeve that as I mentioned before was totally my fault.) I figure that if I get a little pinhole or two on the bottom, I will just put a piece of tyvek tape over it and call it a day. I'm happy to have the Miles bivy in my arsenal of shelters, and I would buy another if the need came up.